Fight For Her
by Can't-Escape-My-Fandoms
Summary: CS drabble. Post-Good Form, because a) I've been reading everyone else's and want to put my two cents in, b) the idea is distracting me from "Finding Home" and it's pissing me off so I have to get this out, and c) I have a lot of Killian Jones feels right now: In which Charming is Hook's wingman...for his own daughter.


**Disclaimer: I don't own OUAT...otherwise it would be nothing but Hook, Emma, Captain Swan, and Charming family feels.**

Fight For Her

Hook couldn't keep his eyes off of the blonde striding ahead of him. Determination in her step, shoulders set high. Gods, she was a sight to see.

But even that wasn't helping the hole in his heart.

Because he did the stupid thing. The honorable thing. The goddamn, stupidly, honorable thing.

He had told her about Neal being alive.

And now, nothing was going to stop Emma from rescuing him...which left a devastated Hook in her wake.

With Regina and Snow not far behind Emma, that left Hook and Charming bringing up the rear. Neither of them were speaking, in fact none of them really were, everyone was dead set on saving Neal.

Neal. Just thinking the name left a bitter taste in Hook's mouth.

Pan thought that Hook would play his games. Now, having used Emma against him _twice_, Pan thought that Hook would play into his hands. Thought that the pirate was still selfish enough, still set in his old ways, that he'd hoard the secret. That he'd try to keep Emma for himself.

But Pan didn't consider the fact that Hook owed Baelfire.

Nor did he consider the extent of Hook's feelings for Emma. Yes, after their kiss, _gods, could something as amazing and world shattering as that be simply called a kiss?_, Hook realized just how deeply he felt for Emma.

Yes, when she almost died on The Jolly, he realized how deeply he cared for her.

But after that kiss...Hook realized just how much, just how hard, he had fallen in love with her.

Despite that, because of that, Hook told her about Neal. Because it was the right thing to do. Because he owed Bae. But mostly, because he loved Emma, and if he hadn't told her the secret, Pan would've or they would've stumbled upon Neal at some point.

And Emma would've found out that Hook had known. The entire time, he had known. She would've been furious with him. He could handle Emma not loving him back, and maybe (or maybe not, he wouldn't know until they found Neal) just maybe he could handle seeing her with another man, but it would devastate him to have her hate him. Her hating him, would destroy him, it would break him.

That's just how much power that woman had over him. Three hundred years of holding on to Milah, of his sole desire being avenging his first love, and one strong-willed, brilliant, amazing blonde, who understood him, who mirrored him, came into his life and changed absolutely everything for him.

She gave him hope. And Captain Hook, and Killian Jones, were not men that allowed themselves to have hope.

Except now, he wasn't sure he had it anymore.

Because Emma wanted Neal. Of course, she hadn't told him that, but her determination spoke for itself. It made sense. Neal was Henry's father. Neal was her first love. Neal fit in with her family.

Hook was none of that. Hook was just a one-handed pirate with a drinking problem. Hook was just someone who had no one who cared for him.

He let out a quiet sigh. _What the bloody hell are you doing mate?_ He chided himself. _You have no right to her, no right to even try, you're nothing more than a pathetic, villainous pirate. She could never love you. It was a one-time thing, remember?_

"What the hell are you doing?" Charming's voice startled Hook back to reality.

Hook looked at the prince, blue eyes slightly wide, expression confused.

"What ever could you be referring to?" Hook asked.

Charming moved to grip Hook's arm, forcing the pirate to stop. He glanced ahead to see how far the women were, waiting until he was certain that they were out of earshot, before he turned to Hook.

"Emma." Charming said.

Hook pulled away from the prince's grasp. "Don't worry mate, you'll have no problems there. I'll stay away."

Charming scrutinized him, and Hook squirmed.

After a moment, Charming spoke again, "Do you love her?"

His question startled Hook, who was either expecting another threat or sarcastic praise for following the prince's warning back when he was dying.

Hook swallowed, but he couldn't answer.

Charming studied Hook again. Searching the pirate's eyes for something. Whatever he found, the prince smiled when he saw it. "I thought as much."

"Thought what?" Hook whispered. He silently cursed himself that he sounded so bloody...vulnerable.

"That you're in love with Emma." Charming said.

Hook's brows shot up. "And you're...happy about that?" He asked, beyond uncertain.

"Look," Charming began with a heavy sigh, "I know you and I haven't always seen eye to eye, but ever since you came back to Storybrooke, everything you've done has been with Emma and her welfare in mind. You're focused on her, _for her_. Not for me and Snow, not for you, not for Henry." Charming took a breath. "I don't know much about Emma's life, but I do know, or at least I feel, that she has never had anyone look out for her. And...you and I both know that Emma's trust issues...some of them stem from Neal. He did something to her. That's why she was so terrified of him being back in her life, why she lied to Henry about him being alive."

That was news to Hook, but he said nothing. He knew that Charming still had something to say.

"I just...I feel like Neal isn't what Emma needs." Charming continued. "Call it a gut feeling, and believe me, my instincts have never been wrong before. I'm not saying that I think you're right for her either." Charming's stern tone was the only warning Hook was going to get. "But, I can see that Emma has feelings for you. I don't know how strong they are but...the way she looks at you, that's the way Snow used to look at me when she was falling in love with me. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to presume that Emma _is_ falling in love with you, but she does care for you a great deal."

Those words shook Hook. _She does care for you_.

No one cared for him. He was just a pirate, a villain. He had no one. Why would Emma, strong, beautiful, wonderful Emma, care for him?

He didn't deserve it. Truly, he didn't.

"So I'm going to give you some advice." Charming said.

Hook blinked back to attention. Was Charming, trying to _help him _win Emma's affections? Emma's father, the man who punched Hook more than plenty of times, the man who threatened him at sword point, the man who called Hook out on his shit (so that's where Swan got it from), was giving _him_, Captain bloody Hook, advice on...love?

This was...a very striking change of tune for the prince.

_I'm winning you over, I can feel it. _Hook's earlier words came rushing back. He bit down the smile that threatened to appear.

Charming took a breath, because honestly, even _he _couldn't believe the advice he was about to give the pirate. "True love," he paused when Hook's eyebrows shot up to his hairline, "True love isn't easy but it must be fought for. Because once you find it...it can never be replaced."

_A man unwilling to fight for what he wants, deserves what he gets._

It unnerved Hook that his words and Charming's were so similar. That they paralleled each other.

"So Hook," Charming said, "fight for her. Fight for Emma. Because I don't think that anyone has ever fought for her. She deserves to have someone fight for her."

Hook stood taller at that. As though Charming were calling him to attention.

"Will you fight for her?"

Hook met Charming's eyes, resolute now with Charming's...blessing, was it?

"Aye." Hook said. "I will fight for her."

Charming smirked. "Good form."

Hook returned the smirk in kind.

They heard Snow calling them then, and realized just how far they had fallen behind.

Charming gave one last nod to Hook, before hurrying to catch up with the rest.

Hook, however, paused.

_You chose her, and the consequences of that decision. _

Hook smiled, "Too bloody right I did."

He chose Emma then, and he chose here and now to fight for her.

And damn it all to hell, he was not giving up on her.

Because Emma Swan was a woman that was more than worth fighting for.


End file.
